Keys of Discipline
by PKsDancingGirl
Summary: A series of misc. Avatar drabbles. Pairings and non.
1. Keys of Discipline

A/N - As you can see, I've kind of left "Intentions of a Hard Boiled Egg" lying somewhere in the sands of time. I'm like that sometimes. Sorry for those of you who actually liked where that was going. I've hit a sort of wall in my life where my only Richard Gere is a long string of oneshots and drabbles, so this is my first hand over hand.

I'm going to start writing now. Don't know what's going to come of it. See you at the end.

* * *

**Keys of Discipline**

She sat down on the worn wooden bench. It was less comfortable than she remembered, but still as comforting as it had been all those years ago. Resting her hands gently on the ivory in front of her, she inhaled deeply, as if she were trying to drug herself with the fruit of what was to come.

One finger, then the next, over and over again until the sounds they caused grew more confident. These keys were familiar haunts to her memory, and their notes were like old friends whose faces Time had somehow left unchanged. Sweet simplicity muttered its way through her consciousness as the rhythms came to life again.

Her mother use to hum while she cooked, cleaned, healed, and played. Thus, the memory was born.

But it grew over time as the instrument to bring it back came into the possession of its bearer. Years of unsung music danced through the girl's young fingers as the struggled to tame the writhing tones within her own mind. Soon the whispered memoirs of her past became resoundingly vivid pictures as the tones cultivated their own brilliance and memory.

Now the child was a woman, and though the roughened muscles sometimes strayed from their intended path, the simple melody and its graceful harmonies sang through the hall again.

"It's sadder now." There was a man in the room. "Emptier."

"What is?" She asked without looking up. _My mother's music?_

"This room," he said. Eyeing the arched ceiling, he added, "This ugly room."

The girl sighed, spinning the final chords in the air around her. "I know."

"Do you want to take that with you?" he asked her. "I can call them back in if you want it."

She looked at the piano, letting her fingers slide along its smooth and darkened surface. "No. I don't need it."

Suddenly the man was sitting next to her. "I know you don't," he said, putting his hand on hers. She looked into his topaz eyes and saw her own reflected back. "That's why I asked you if you _wanted _it." He smiled. "There's a difference you know."

Water welled up behind her eyelashes. "I…I just…"

The man pulled her into an embrace. "I know."

She sobbed lightly into his shoulder. "They're gone. They're gone."

He held her tightly for a second, then brought her face to where his was visible. "Not really." She sat up and wiped her eyes. He pointed to the keys laid out in front of them. "Look at this piano, Kana. Can't you see your mother's face in the music it plays?"

She gazed wistfully at the ruminations before her. He was right. She was there, laughing, smiling, crying, dancing... She was there. But where was he? She turned to the man before her. "Ursan…" His face, though clean of pain, and devoid of betrayal was as strong and quiet as her father's had been.

He kissed her forehead. "You truly are our mother's daughter."

* * *

_Enjoyable? Understandable…? However, the Author's note had a few references of which I'm kind of proud. Can you spot all three?_

_Tell me what you think, because I think it was pretty confusing, what with the way I kind of skirted around antecedents._


	2. I Thought You'd Like It

_Yay! less than 500 words! So exciting!_

* * *

**I Thought You'd Like It….**

"It reminded me of you," Sokka said.

Katara raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me? How exactly did _that _remind you of me?" she asked incredulously, pointing to the cute- and-unexpectedly-malicious Wolffox pup.

Sokka picked it up, holding its head between his fingers. "It has your eyes," he said with a shrug.

It did. The large, round jewels staring adorably out of its gray-black face were very blue. Katara almost felt like the little animal had stolen something from her simply by wearing them. She eyed it critically as she took it out of her brother's hands. "What am I going to name you?" she asked it as it labored in vain to chew off her finger, which was barely too far away.

"How about—" Sokka said quickly, then stopped.

"What?" Katara asked him.

"Nevermind," he said, looking at his feet.

She smirked at him. "No, what were you going to say?"

Aang popped up from behind her shoulder, Momo perched on his head. "Wha'cha got there, Katara?" he asked.

"Sokka gave me a pet," she explained, showing him the puppy as it made a vicious swipe at her face. "I can't figure out what to name it."

Aang laughed. "How about Sokka's intelligence!" he said. "We'll always know where to find it!"

Katara smiled. "Or Sokka's instincts," she said with a grin towards her brother. "Just in case we ever need to ask it a question."

Sokka glared at Aang, his face very red. "Listen, you two," he said angrily. "I thought Katara looked a little lonely the other day when Aang was practicing with Toph, so I decided to do something about it. I thought you'd like it, Katara, not make fun of me for it." He stormed off into the forest, leaving his two stunned friends to swap looks of guilt.

"Sokka, wait," Katara said, running after him. "I do like it. It's…it's cute." She grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. "I didn't mean to make you angry."

"You never _mean_ to make me angry, but you manage to do it anyway," he said with a malevolent look. "I may not be able to bend anything, but that doesn't mean I can't do things, Katara," he said.

"Of course you can! I never said you couldn't."

Sokka raised an eyebrow and hesitated. "Well, no you didn't, but sometimes you act like it."

They stared at each other for a long moment while Sokka's Instincts nibbled on its own ear. Katara tried to convey with her face that she was sorry, but Sokka's expression was still cold.

"Why don't I name him Hakoda? A little piece of home to travel with us."

Sokka's features softened, and his eyes drifted to the animal as it drooled on his sister's shoulder. "It's a good name," he said.

Katara smiled and hugged her brother. "I thought you'd like it."


	3. Out of My Nation

I had this songficlet up separately, but this just makes things easier.

I don't own Avatar.  
Nor do I own _Out of My League.  
_But I do own this story.

**Out of My Nation**

_It's her hair and her eyes today_  
_That just simply take me away._

"You're doing it again," she said, leaning over him, a coy smile on her sweet face. Her mother's necklace dangled down and clung to her chin and her glimmering and unleashed brown hair fell down around his face.

Zuko smiled groggily back at her. "Doing what?" he asked, struggling to keep his eyes open. He had never been so happy in his life as he had been the past couple of days when he could wake up to that beautiful smile.

"Sleeping," Katara said in a mockingly stern tone. "How many times have I told you that sleeping this late must be bad for your health."

"I personally think you're wrong there," Zuko said as he breathed in the cool spring air, getting a powerful feeling of bliss as some of her essence drifted lazily into his lungs.

"Even if I am, I know that you sleeping in is bad for my health, so get up," her smile returned as she prodded him in the shoulder gently. He looked at her pathetically, pleading silently for just a few more minutes of slumber. "Please?" she added irresistibly.

"Alright, okay, I'm up," Zuko complied, pushing himself up. "What do I do now?"

_And the feeling that I'm falling further in love_  
_Makes me shiver, but in a good way._

They had been camping together for the past week, and while the presence of Sokka and Aang was immeasurably irritating, it was worth it just for these few glorious minutes when the two boys were either asleep or out doing something "productive". Zuko pulled himself out of his blankets and pulled his leather tunic on over his cloth red one. As he did so, he watched Katara, a giddy smile involuntarily playing on his face.

_All the times I have sat and stared  
__As she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair_

She ran her fingers through her long, dark hair, trying to pull it back into a braid. For a very long time, vastly longer than the time that Zuko had known her, she had been able to perform this art by herself. However, "her fingers had been bothering her lately" and she hadn't quite been able to make her locks do what she wanted them to. Zuko watched in slight and well-worn awe as she twisted a long section of brown silk around her fingers and then around themselves in a braid. She seemed to be doing fine, but still—

"Zuko," she called in a frustrated tone, "can you help me?"

Zuko had to admit it felt rather bizarre for him to be doing a girl's hair, but he wasn't complaining.

_As she purses her lips, bats her eyes and she plays with me  
Sitting there slack-jawed and nothing to say _

She looked at her reflection in the pond next to their campsite. Her hair was less than perfect to say the least. She smiled that same charmingly coy smile. "You're so talented, Zuko," she said, putting her lips together tightly, stifling a laugh. He nigh gaped at her as she batted her eyelashes, flashing her glittering cerulean jewels. He didn't feel comfortable staring, but he didn't want to look away either.

"Have I told you lately…" he started, but lost courage.

"Told me what?" she asked, cocking her head and raising her eyebrows in a mirthful look.

Zuko swallowed, trying to push his stomach down out of his throat. "You're a-a-amazing," he stuttered, his voice cracking. She laughed brightly and wrapped her arms around his neck, throwing them both into the pond behind him.

_'Cause I love her with all that I am  
__And my voice shakes along with my hands  
__And she's all that I see  
__And she's all that I need  
__And I'm out of my league  
__Once again._

Zuko felt the murky water swirling around him, afraid to open his eyes and let the unfamiliar fluids flow in. He couldn't decipher which way was up, until he felt a warm hand grab his wrist and pull him to the surface.

_It's her masterful melody  
__As she calls out my name to me._

"Zuko!" Katara called, her voice even more light-hearted than before. "Isn't it lovely in here?"

"I'm sure it is," he replied, wiping the foreign substances off of his face, "for a Waterbender, anyway."

"You can't tell me that this water isn't magnificent!" Katara told him, baffled. "It's so cool and soft."

_How can water feel soft?_ Zuko asked himself. But she looked so elated dancing about in the water that he didn't want to question her sanity by voicing his confusion. Besides, the water didn't feel that bad. It was worth it.

_As the world spins around her she laughs, rolls her eyes  
__And I feel like I'm falling but it's no surprise_

She twirled around in circles, her hands outstretched and parallel to the ground, laughing joyously. "It feels so wonderful! I've forgotten what it feels like to be surrounded by water. It's almost like being in a cloud," she said smiling. "I'd much rather be here than anywhere else on Earth."

"Me too," Zuko whispered. He felt his heart and mind swimming in the muddy water around him. He felt almost dizzy standing there looking at her. Suddenly, he felt overbalanced, and he tripped over a slippery rock, plunging face-first into the cold.

_'Cause I love her with all that I am  
__And my voice shakes along with my hands  
__'Cause it's fright'ning to be  
__Swimming in this strange sea  
But I'd rather be here than on land.  
__And she's all that I see  
__And she's all that I need  
__And I'm out of my league  
__Once again._

His lungs filled with air as he came to the surface again. Carefully turning around, he pulled himself up onto the grassy shore again and sat with his lower legs hanging into the pond. Katara came over and sat next to him, her face still filled with wonder and happiness. She looked out over the open expanse of land and water in front of them, her sapphire eyes pursuing every nook in the landscape. Zuko knew, just from the short time that he had known her, that nature was her love and she never tired of its wonder or beauty. He found that incredibly ironic, considering...

_It's her hair and her eyes today  
__That just simply take me away._

In all the chaos of the unexpected dive, Katara's makeshift braid had fallen out again, and her long, now near-black hair hung loosely at her side. Zuko felt his hand reach out and touch the cool, wet satin. She turned to look at him, her face puzzled, her eyes questioning.

"Oh," he stuttered, pulling his hand back quickly. He could feel his face growing warm. "Sorry."

Katara smiled and shook her head at him. "You're so strange," she told him in an ersatz-serious tone. He looked down at his submerged toes, waiting for his blush to subside.

_And the feeling that I'm falling further in love  
__Makes me shiver, but in a good way._

She stood up and walked back into the clearing where their camp was located. Zuko watched her go, and felt again the familiar sensation of his stomach rising and getting caught in his throat. He stifled a choke as he tried to calm his nerves. It was hard; she was so calm and…to put it simply…beautiful.

_All the times I have sat and stared  
__As she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair_

Katara contemplatively picked up the strand of wet hair that Zuko had touched just a few moments before. She looked at it, an undetectable smile on her mouth and in her heart. She was glad she hadn't let him sleep in that morning.

_As she purses her lips, bats her eyes and she plays with me  
__Sitting there slack-jawed and nothing to say._

"Zuko?" she called to him. He was staring at her again, his mouth slightly open and his eyes almost glazed over. He snapped out of his trance and she blinked playfully at him.

"Hi," he said stupidly. _You're an idiot_ he told himself. _Hi? What kind of thing is that to say?_

"Hi," she said back to him through a laugh. "You look dry."

"Huh?" he asked dully, not fully recovered from his stupor. She rushed at him and pushed both of them back into the pond.

'Cause I love her with all that I am 

_And my voice shakes along with my hands  
__'Cause it's fright'ning to be  
__Swimming in this strange sea  
But I'd rather be here than on land.  
__And she's all that I see  
__And she's all that I need  
__And I'm out of my league  
__Once again._

"You're amazing," he said again to her as their heads hovered over the surface of the water.

"I know," she said. "You've told me before."

He just stared at her; he had never been so happy in his life, and he had a feeling that he would never be again.


End file.
